Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis and Sport: Allies or Enemies? - Abstract
Introduction: Health professionals generally encourage Physical Activities and Sport (PAS) as it helps for patients suffering from a chronic disease, such as Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis (AIS). The experts recommend PAS for AIS patients. But, this notion remains contested by some physicians. The aim of this review is to elucidate the debated impact of Physical Activity and Sport (PAS) on patients with Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis (AIS). We carried out a systematic literature review to elucidate the impact of PAS on AIS and to bring a scientific answer to this controversial topic.
Materials and Methods: We performed a systematic review of the literature according to PRISMA statement and STARTLITE methodology. The search was conducted in PubMed, Cochrane and PEDro, from 1966 to 2019, by 3 independent reviewers.
Results: 416 publications were found, 10 of which were included. These articles had a low level of evidence (level 3-4, grade B-C).
The main results are:
- Classical ballet dance and gymnastics increase the risk of having AIS, especially for girls with hyperlaxity that practice at a high level.
- Asymmetric sports (rackets sports) do not increase the risk of scoliosis.
- Swimming is not particularly recommended in AIS.
Conclusions: Regular PAS is commonly recommended in AIS. However, some PAS seem to increase the risk of having scoliosis, especially if they are practiced at a high level (classical ballet dance, gymnastics). In AIS, we recommend to vary different physical activities and to avoid intense practice (no more than 10 hours per week).